


Different Christmas

by Burgie



Series: The High School AU of Fluff and Good Things [5]
Category: Star Stable Online
Genre: 12 Days of Ficsmas, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-18
Updated: 2018-12-18
Packaged: 2019-09-22 09:44:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17057471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Burgie/pseuds/Burgie
Summary: Darko's Christmas isn't going so well, so he calls for a hero. Viktor and Selena belong to sso_Viktor7.





	Different Christmas

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sso_Viktor7](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sso_Viktor7/gifts).



They were at it again. Always, every Christmas (or any holiday for that matter), Darko's sisters would fight. Over the cooking, over the cleaning, over what one was wearing, over how much time they spent in the bathroom. Normally, it was okay, Jessica and Sabine got along okay together (if only because Jessica spent a lot of her time at nightclubs), but when Katja came home for the holidays...

Darko sighed, sinking down onto the short chain fence that made up their front fence. He could still hear Katja and Jessica screaming at each other. How come Katja got the modelling contract, Jessica was screaming, when she was clearly the more beautiful one? And then Sabine would add in that at least when Katja was away, they didn't have to hold their pee for half an hour. That was a completely unnecessary detail, Katja snipped back, Jess backing her up.

Darko had gone outside, saying that he needed a smoke. He didn't smoke, of course, it was an unhealthy habit. Everyone expected him to, though. It would go with the bad boy attitude and look, he supposed. But, despite his dysfunctional family causing him added stress, Darko had never even thought about taking up the habit. He sat on the fence instead, swinging back and forth slightly.

"Oh, to hell with this," Darko finally muttered, pulling his phone out of his pocket. He found the number that he needed under 'Freckles', a brief smie lighting his face at the freckled, grinning face of his boyfriend that was Viktor's profile picture in his phone. As snowflakes landed in his red hair, Darko hit the 'call' button and held his phone up to his ear.

"Darko!" Viktor sounded so cheerful, so happy, that Darko couldn't help but smile a little wider at the sound of it. Warmth replaced the cold, angry feelings in his chest.

"Hey there, freckles," said Darko. He barely even felt the cold from the weather anymore. "Merry Christmas."

"Feliz navidad," said Viktor, and Darko held back a wistful sigh at Viktor's accent. It was so sexy, it always made him melt. "What are you up to this time of year?"

"That's why I called you, actually," said Darko. "My family is... dysfunctional." Viktor gasped. Darko heard the phone being moved, and then Viktor's voice, more distantly, speaking to his mother in Spanish from across the house. And yet, that yelling brought a warmth to Darko's heart. This was what a real family should sound like, yelling across the house to have a conversation, not screaming the house down over a bathroom.

"Sorry about that," said Viktor when he returned to the phone. "I was just asking mama if she'd like company. She said si. Yes. If you want to, I mean." Darko chuckled at Viktor's correction.

"I would love that, freckles," said Darko. "I can't stand being here. It is Christmas, after all. And I know that it should be spent with family, but... if I stay here any longer, I might just explode."

"Well, we always cook too much anyway," said Viktor with a laugh that made Darko's insides melt. "We'll set a place for you at the table."

"I'll get my bike and be there before you know it," said Darko. "Until then, freckles."

"I'll be waiting for you by the mailbox," said Viktor, sounding all too excited and half-serious. Darko was still grinning as he ended the call and put his phone in the pocket of his puffy winter jacket. It was black, of course, like most of his wardrobe, with a red collar. His long pants, similarly, were black with red stripes down the sides.

As he walked by the house, Darko leaned in the front door, braving the yelling.

"I'm going out!" he called. "Don't wait up." He sighed as the yelling only continued, wondering if he'd even been heard.

And then, after putting his red helmet on and straddling his bike, kicking up the kickstand, Darko turned the key in the ignition and his motorcycle roared to life. He grinned at the thrill that went through them as the engine purred. Oh, how he loved this bike. The fact that it quickly got him to Viktor's house was just an added bonus.

Darko hadn't really expected Viktor to be waiting at the mailbox, so he grinned when he saw his boyfriend actually standing there, dressed warmly in a dark blue knitted hat, red jacket, dark blue scarf, and thick black pants. He waved to Darko with a red-mittened hand as Darko drove by him, parking in the driveway behind Selena's car. The stunned, lovestruck expression on Viktor's face when Darko pulled his helmet off was all the validation that Darko needed.

"Hey, freckles," said Darko, giving him a wink. Viktor flailed his hands a little, taking a few steps towards his boyfriend, and planted a kiss on Darko's lips after Darko had put his bike back on the kickstand.

"Hi," said Viktor, grinning, his teeth white in his darker face. "Come on, mama's just serving Christmas lunch." Darko gratefully followed Viktor into the house, relieved at the warmth that washed over him the moment he stepped inside. And not just from the heat inside. No, it was in the festive decorations, the little fairylights strung everywhere, some white, some multicoloured, the snowglobes that dotted every available surface. And, of course, so many 'Feliz navidad' and 'Merry Christmas' signs, some with reindeer, others with snowmen, even some with holly. The one strange thing, other than the lack of tree, was the music that played through the house. It wasn't your typical Christmas music, songs about snow and celebration, rather, it was...

"Is this Puerto Rican music?" Darko asked, looking at his boyfriend. Viktor looked self-conscious for a moment until he saw the awed look in Darko's eyes, the way that he was already tapping his foot to the beat.

"Uh, yeah, mama and I play music from our home country every Christmas," said Viktor. "It's nice to dance around to it. And it is Christmas music, even if you can't understand the lyrics since they're not in English."

"Yes, I can imagine that it is," said Darko, already moving his hips a little. Oh, this was already leagues better than the disastrous lunch he'd left. Even if the smells were as different as the sounds.

"But let's eat first," said Viktor. "Lunch is ready, we've been working on it all day and Phantom and Champion might eat it if we don't hurry. Mostly Champion. Or Glory." He'd recently acquired the cat, Louisa having gifted him with a kitten for his birthday that year. She was a little shit of a cat, but Viktor and Selena both loved her.

"Well, if you cooked some of it, let's not waste time," said Darko with a grin. Viktor grinned in return and almost skipped into the dining room where Selena was guarding the smoked pork, mofongo, and rice with beans from the hungry animals. Phantom wasn't actively jumping up at the table, but he was a master of using the puppy dog eyes. He looked up as Darko entered and gave his human's boyfriend a wary glance, though he quickly relaxed with his head on his paws once again, lying over by the wall.

"Oh, Darko, you made it!" Selena cried, hurrying forward to give Darko a big hug. "Feliz navidad."

"Thank you, you too," said Darko, not trusting himself to say the words without butchering them. "It will be a merry Christmas now, I think."

"Please, take a seat," said Selena, gesturing to the table. "You can even sit next to my son if you want, I won't judge."

"Wow, Vik wasn't kidding when he said that you made a lot," said Darko, eyeing the large spread. The smoked pig took up one huge platter, as did the rice and beans and mofongo.

"And this is even before dessert," said Viktor. Selena laughed.

"On the bright side, leftovers for days," said Selena, winking. "You can take some home, if you want."

"Oh, thank you, but I don't trust my family to not eat it just to spite me," said Darko. Selena looked aghast.

"Oh, you poor thing," said Selena. She took Darko's hands in her own. "Well, don't worry, my house is always open to you. You're basically family, at this point. Although you and my little galaxy are closer than family." She winked again, this time making both boys blush.

"Let's eat," said Viktor, taking a seat at the table. "I'm sure Darko must be starving."

"Yes, actually, I am," said Darko, grinning as he sat down opposite his boyfriend. Their feet touched under the table.

It definitely wasn't a Christmas lunch like Darko was accustomed to, but he found that he didn't mind. Even without the ham and turkey, the spices in everything were delicious, singing on his tongue. He loved Selena's cooking, though he didn't come over for dinner very often. If only because it was a little embarrassing that Selena knew exactly what they'd be doing that night whenever Darko stayed over. But at least with this dinner, there would be no fighting over turkey or chicken limbs because there were no real limbs to gnaw on. Only delicious pork, which Darko immediately wanted more of. Though, he did feed scraps of it to the hungry dogs and cat beneath the table, Viktor and Selena doing the same thing.

"Eat as much as you like, but leave room for dessert," said Selena.

"What's dessert?" Darko asked, looking up with his plate halfway to the rice and beans.

"Tostones and sweet rice," said Viktor. "You don't wanna miss that, trust me, they're delicious."

"I have never heard of that first one," said Darko. Viktor and Selena both gasped, sharing a look of horror.

"How could we forget that?" Viktor asked, his hand to his chest. "Quickly, mama, we must remedy this at once."

"Yes," said Selena, rising from her seat. "Right now. Darko, come with us to the kitchen."

"Right now?" Darko asked. "But I just finished eating."

"They're like banana chips, I guess," said Viktor. "You can snack on them."

"Oh," said Darko, a little more eager now as he followed his boyfriend and Selena into the kitchen.

Once in the kitchen, Selena picked up a bunch of green plantains and began peeling them while Viktor got out a frying pan and filled it shallowly with oil. Darko stood in the middle, unsure of what to do. It felt so bizarre, music in a different language blaring through the house while Viktor and his mother chattered to each other in Spanish as they cooked.

"Here, I'll show you how to do it and then you can do it yourself," said Selena. Darko stood by her and watched as Selena sliced the plantain neatly into slices which she then handed to Viktor to drop into the oil. He fried them until each side was golden brown, then used tongs to put them on a chopping board. Selena took over from here, flattening the slices with the flat bottom of a bowl. Darko watched the whole thing in fascination, admiring the way that the two worked together as a team. He almost had tears in his eyes, no, he did have tears in his eyes. So this was what it was like in a happy, loving family.

"And now we just dip them in cold water, refry, and season with salt," said Viktor, showing Darko the actions and finishing by sprinkling salt over the small pile of tostones that was quickly growing on a paper-lined plate. He popped one into his mouth, smiling at the pleasant taste. "Delicious. Try one!"

Darko picked up a tostone from the plate, popping it into his mouth a little uncertainly. But immediately, a grin spread across his face at the salty-sweet taste.

"You like?" Viktor asked.

"I love," Darko declared, picking up another. This was good, he decided. Standing in his boyfriend's kitchen, eating these delicious tostones, his belly full of a meal that had been deliciously spiced and seasoned, his heart full of love. He felt loved, for the first time in a long time, just being here.

"Leave room for the sweet rice," said Selena, a twinkle in her eye.

"Maybe we should leave that one for dessert after dinner, mama," said Viktor with a chuckle, seeing Darko place a hand on his stomach.

"I might burst if I eat any more," said Darko, chuckling.

"Ah, but I need to fatten you up," said Selena, nudging his side.

"Mama," Viktor gasped, aghast. "Don't ruin his perfect figure."

"You can both work it off tonight," said Selena with a laugh.

"Mama!" Viktor chided, his cheeks darkening in a blush. The blush was much more obvious on Darko's face, though.

"Do you deny it?" Selena asked, a playful smile on her lips. Neither boy said anything. "Didn't think so. Now, let's put away the leftovers before the dogs eat them all."

"It's happened before," said Viktor as he passed out of the kitchen and into the dining room. Glory was sitting on one of the chairs, whiskers twitching as she sniffed the air. She jumped down when Viktor appeared, though, trotting back over to curl up on Champion's side as he flopped down in mock innocence.

"Yes, butter wouldn't melt," said Selena drily as she looked at the trio who had definitely not been nosing around under the table for scraps.

"I'll just let my father know I'll be here," said Darko, getting his phone out and sending a quick text to his father. That done, he helped Viktor and Selena with the cleanup. If that Puerto Rican dessert was that good, what would the sweet rice be like? He needed to stay and find out. Besides, this feeling in his chest... he didn't want it to go away. He definitely needed to come over here more often.


End file.
